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Gingrich admits: ‘no proof’ to support welfare smear

08/09/12 09:28 AMUpdated 09/06/13 07:02 AM

Rachel talked on the show last night about Newt Gingrich’s emerging role as a Romney campaign surrogate, and why that may not be a positive development. To help underscore the point, consider the former House Speaker’s discussion with Anderson Cooper last night.

The CNN host was particularly interested in the blatant falsehoods in Mitt Romney’s ad on welfare, and pressed Gingrich, in his capacity as a Romney surrogate, to defend what is “just not supported by evidence.”

What I found fascinating is that Gingrich, who supports the attack, struggled to offer a defense. “I think if the ad makers had asked me I would have said ‘this makes it possible’ would have been a good way to enter into what it said,” the Republican replied. In other words, the Romney surrogate believes the Romney ad includes language the surrogate can’t defend.

When the host pressed further, asking if Gingrich would concede the “wording of the ad is not actually accurate,” the Romney surrogate ultimately conceded, “We have no proof today, but I would say to you under Obama’s ideology it is absolutely true that he would be comfortable sending a lot of people checks for doing nothing.”

So to summarize, Romney lied to the public and said Obama’s policy eliminates the welfare law’s work requirement. Romney’s high-profile surrogate appeared on national television, rejected the wording of Romney’s lie, acknowledged there’s “no proof” to support the lie, but said it might turn out to be true eventually. Maybe. He thinks.